- The only cancer-treating hospital in Gaza was forced to halt services after it ran out of fuel.
- Israeli blockades have prevented critical supplies, like fuel and food, from entering Gaza.
- Thousands of cancer patients are at risk after the hospital’s closing and continuing airstrikes.
The only hospital treating cancer in the Gaza Strip has run out of fuel and cannot continue operating amid Israeli supply blockades.
Subhi Skaik, the director of the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital said in a press conference that the hospital went out of service Wednesday, per Reuters.
“We tell the world: don’t leave cancer patients to a certain death due to the hospital being out of service,” Skaik said during the press conference.
Mai al-Kaila, the Palestinian Health Minister, said that 16 out of 35 hospitals in the Gaza Strip and over 50 of Gaza’s 72 primary healthcare clinics are no longer operational, per Al Jazeera.
“The lives of 70 cancer patients inside the hospital are seriously threatened,” al-Kaila said in a statement, per Reuters. “The number of cancer patients in the Gaza Strip is about 2,000 living in catastrophic health conditions as a result of the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Strip and the displacement of a large number.”
The blockades began after Hamas launched an attack in south Israel on October 7.
Since then, Israel has relentlessly bombed Gaza, reportedly killing nearly 9,000 Palestinians, most of whom are civilians and almost half of whom are children, per the Defense of Children in Palestine organization.
Concerns worldwide about the state of the Palestinian civilians have only grown more serious since Israel denied supplies from entering Palestine, including food, water, and medical supplies, per Insider’s previous reporting.
Now, some trucks with aid including water, food, and medical supplies have been able to enter Gaza, with more expected in the coming days, but not enough have entered to provide sufficient support for Palestinians, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters Tuesday, per Reuters.
American politician Bernie Sanders previously called Israel’s actions a “war crime” via a statement posted on X.
“Right now, the international community must focus on reducing humanitarian suffering and protecting innocent people on both sides of this conflict,” Sanders said. “Israel’s blanket denial of food, water, and other necessities to Gaza is a serious violation of international law and will do nothing but harm innocent civilians.”
